Svadhisthana: Bringing Balance to the Second Chakra

If the previous first (Muladhara) chakra was all about survival and affirming our right to have, this second, Svadhisthana chakra, is all about emotions and pleasure as we progressively learn to assert our right to feel. With its Sanskrit word standing for “the dwelling place of self”, this second chakra is located above the pubic bone and below the navel and it is the center for all emotion, pleasure and creativity related energies. When this chakra is in balance we tend to feel joy, satisfaction, wellbeing and abundance. If this chakra is out of balance however, we may feel emotional instability or numbness; sexual dysfunction, reluctance to change, addictions, or depression.

Some of the more concrete physical and mental expressions derived from an unaligned or blocked second chakra may involve lower back pain, urinary tract infections, problems in the lower abdomen or pelvis, bladder and kidney issues, impotence, ovary cysts, or other reproductive complications; addictions, repressed emotions, or lack of creativity.

Five asanas or yoga postures that can aid you with unblocking and re-aligning the Svadhisthana chakra are:

It is important to canalize a light of compassion and understanding while we seek to recover this second chakra; as once you start paying attention, it is easy to see how our society has unfortunately this infinite ingrained creative nature of ours under pressure and at the same time twisted our view of sexuality and pleasure. Most of us have been given perimeters in which we are constantly pushed to fit in order to gain the approval and respect of others; sadly, disconnecting ourselves completely from our own feelings and bodies, without realizing that the one and only approval and respect we need is that of our own selves. It is therefore necessary to approach this balancing of the second chakra with patience and kindness in order to start re-learning how social acceptance and respect over our own authenticity is not truly what we are looking for.

Open this chakra by honoring your body, by creatively expressing yourself in whatever way you want to without worrying about failure; as well as by working consciously on building a healthy relationship with yourself, with others, and with pleasure. Remember, building a healthy relationship with yourself involves listening to your own emotions, digesting them in a healthy way (learning the underlying lesson), and letting them go.

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Other tools that you may want to consider for when working towards aligning the Svadhisthana chakra is its corresponding sound “Vam,” its color orange; gemstones such as amber, calcite orange, carnelian, or hematite which you can place on the chakra’s region while lying down, also using essential oils like cardamom, sandalwood, or bergamot and eating orange juicy foods like oranges or mangoes, adding ginger and cinnamon to your diet, and drinking lots of water.